Phototransformation of stilbene in van der Waals nanocapsules

We have utilized para-hexanoylcalix[4]arene nanocapsules as hosts to carry out phototransformations of cis- and trans-stilbene. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction studies were performed to define precisely the location of encapsulated stilbenes inside the capsule and to analyze possible pathways of phototransformation. cis-Stilbene stacks as a pi-pi dimer located at the center of the capsule, whereas trans-stilbene does not form such a dimer. Irradiation of the crystalline inclusion complexes of each isomer of stilbene in the solid state leads to the appearance of the second isomer, and after prolonged photolysis, photodimerization also occurs. syn-Tetraphenylcyclobutane is formed as the major product of dimerization and its yield depends on the time and intensity of irradiation. In most cases, the single crystals of the complexes remain intact during irradiation; hence, the nanocapsules have the potential to serve as robust nanoreactors in the solid state. The confinement in the nanocapsules is sufficient to keep the reacting molecules together, although this is less restrictive than for trans-stilbene crystals, in which the molecules cannot achieve a favorable orientation for dimerization.     

Core–Shell Crystals of Porous Organic Cages

The first examples of core–shell porous molecular crystals are described. The physical properties of the core–shell crystals, such as surface hydrophobicity, CO₂ /CH₄ selectivity, are controlled by the chemical composition of the shell. This shows that porous core–shell molecular crystals can exhibit synergistic properties that out‐perform materials built from the individual, constituent molecules.     

Revaluation of the correlation of isomer shift with Np-O bond length in various neptunyl(V and VI) compounds

Summary The correlations of isomer shifts in various neptunyl(V and VI) compounds with crystallographic structures were revaluated. A linear correlation between the isomer shifts of neptunyl(VI) compounds and Np-O bond lengths of neptunyl group has been demonstrated. On the other hand, it has been evidenced that the isomer shifts of neptunyl(V) compounds are correlated much stronger with the mean Np-O distances in the crystals than the lengths in neptunyl(V) group.     

Guest‐Triggered Supramolecular Isomerism in a Pillared‐Layer Structure with Unusual Isomers of Paddle‐Wheel Secondary Building Units by Reversible Single‐Crystal‐to‐Single‐Crystal Transformation

Solvothermal reaction of Zn(NO₃)₂ ? 4 H₂O, 1,4‐bis[2‐(4‐pyridyl)ethenyl]benzene (bpeb) and 4,4′‐oxybisbenzoic acid (H₂obc) in the presence of dimethylacetamide (DMA) as one of the solvents yielded a threefold interpenetrated pillared‐layer porous coordination polymer with pcu topology, [Zn₂(bpeb)(obc)₂] ? 5 H₂O ( 1 ), which comprised an unusual isomer of the well‐known paddle‐wheel building block and the trans–trans–trans isomer of the bpeb pillar ligand. When dimethylformamide (DMF) was used instead of DMA, a supramolecular isomer [Zn₂(bpeb)(obc)₂] ? 2 DMF ? H₂O ( 2 ), with the trans–cis–trans isomer of the bpeb ligand with a slightly different variation of the paddle‐wheel repeating unit, was isolated. In MeOH, single crystals of 2 were transformed by solvent exchange in a single‐crystal‐to‐single‐crystal (SCSC) manner to yield [Zn₂(bpeb)(obc)₂] ? 2 H₂O ( 3 ), which is a polymorph of 1 . SCSC conversion of 3 to 2 was achieved by soaking 3 in DMF. Compounds 1 and 2 as well as 2 and 3 are supramolecular isomers.     

Non-stackable molecules assemble into porous crystals displaying concerted cavity-changing motions

With small molecules, it is not easy to create large void spaces. Flat aromatics stack tightly, while flexible chains fold to fill the cavities. As an intuitive design to make open channels inside molecularly constructed solids, we employed propeller-shaped bicyclic triazoles to prepare a series of aromatic-rich three-dimensional (3D) building blocks. This modular approach has no previous example, but is readily applicable to build linear, bent, and branched arrays of non-stackable architectural motifs from existing flat aromatics by single-pot reactions. A letter H-shaped molecule thus prepared self-assembles into porous crystals, the highly unusual stepwise gas sorption behaviour of which prompted in-depth studies. A combination of single-crystal and powder X-ray diffraction analysis revealed multiple polymorphs, and sterically allowed pathways for their reversible interconversions that open and close the pores in response to external stimuli.

Like non-collapsible open voids within stacks of steel H-beams, a non-covalent assembly of three-dimensional aromatics produces porous crystals. Concerted motions of the molecular H-beams open and close the cavities in response to external stimuli.     

Coordinated NH3-removal-induced hydrogen adsorption of Cu-complex crystals

We synthesized a discrete type of organic-inorganic hybrid crystal [Cu(ina)2(NH3)2(H2O)2] (ina = isonicotinate). The monomer units connect to each other with hydrogen bonds and pi-pi interactions, forming a three-dimensional network. Removal of ammonia and water molecules by vacuum heating treatment induced a substantial change from nonporous to porous crystals. The resultant porous crystals can predominantly adsorb supercritical hydrogen rather than nitrogen vapor at 77 K.     

A Permanent Mesoporous Organic Cage with an Exceptionally High Surface Area

Recently, porous organic cage crystals have become a real alternative to extended framework materials with high specific surface areas in the desolvated state. Although major progress in this area has been made, the resulting porous compounds are restricted to the microporous regime, owing to the relatively small molecular sizes of the cages, or the collapse of larger structures upon desolvation. Herein, we present the synthesis of a shape‐persistent cage compound by the reversible formation of 24 boronic ester units of 12 triptycene tetraol molecules and 8 triboronic acid molecules. The cage compound bears a cavity of a minimum inner diameter of 2.6 nm and a maximum inner diameter of 3.1 nm, as determined by single‐crystal X‐ray analysis. The porous molecular crystals could be activated for gas sorption by removing enclathrated solvent molecules, resulting in a mesoporous material with a very high specific surface area of 3758 m² g^?1 and a pore diameter of 2.3 nm, as measured by nitrogen gas sorption.     

Supramolecular engineering of intrinsic and extrinsic porosity in covalent organic cages

Control over pore size, shape, and connectivity in synthetic porous materials is important in applications such as separation, storage, and catalysis. Crystalline organic cage molecules can exhibit permanent porosity, but there are few synthetic methods to control the crystal packing and hence the pore connectivity. Typically, porosity is either 'intrinsic' (within the molecules) or 'extrinsic' (between the molecules)--but not both. We report a supramolecular approach to the assembly of porous organic cages which involves bulky directing groups that frustrate the crystal packing. This generates, in a synthetically designed fashion, additional 'extrinsic' porosity between the intrinsically porous cage units. One of the molecular crystals exhibits an apparent Brunauer-Emmett-Teller surface area of 854 m(2) g(-1), which is higher than that of unfunctionalized cages of the same dimensions. Moreover, connectivity between pores, and hence guest uptakes, can be modulated by the introduction of halogen bonding motifs in the cage modules. This suggests a broader approach to the supramolecular engineering of porosity in molecular organic crystals.     

Regioselective Synthesis of Quinazolinone‐/Phenanthridine‐Fused Heteropolycycles by Pd‐Catalyzed Direct Intramolecular Aerobic Oxidative C−H Amination from Aromatic Strained Amides

A new route for the expedient synthesis of specific regioisomer of quinazolinone‐ and phenanthridine‐fused heterocycles through a palladium‐catalyzed regioselective intramolecular oxidative C?H amination from cyclic strained amides of aromatic amido–amidine systems (quinazolinones) has been developed. The amine functionalization of an aromatic C?H bond from a strained amide nitrogen involved in aromaticity has been a challenging work so far. The fusion of two heterocyclic cores, quinazolinone and phenanthridine, can occur in two different ways (linear and angular), but under the conditions reported here, only linear type isomer is exclusively produced. This approach provides a variety of substituted quinazolinone‐ and phenanthridine‐fused derivatives in moderate to excellent yields. Moreover, such fused molecules show excellent fluorescent properties and have great potential to be a new type of fluorophores for the use in medicinal and material science.     

高分子富氧膜的进展

本文叙述了近年来国外在高分子富氧膜应用于燃料的富氧燃烧,以节约能耗以及用于医用富氧装置的开发情况;并对寻找高效的富氧膜材料的主要研究动向进行了分析和归纳,包括:高分子化学结构与透气性能的关系,小分子添加剂和液晶类添加剂对透气性能的影响,嵌段接枝等多相聚合物的透气行为以及在多孔底膜表面用化学聚合和等离子体聚合等方法制备超薄膜。     

The synthesis and characterization of all diastereomers of a linear symmetrically fused Tris-Tröger's base analogue: new chiral cleft compounds

The synthesis and characterization of all diastereomers of a linear symmetrically fused tris-Tr?ger's base analogue are described. The diastereomers are unambiguously assigned as syn-anti 1 a, anti-anti 1 b, and syn-syn 1 c isomers, by using X-ray diffraction analysis and NMR spectroscopy. For the first time, the anti-anti and the syn-syn diastereomers of a linear symmetrically fused tris-Tr?ger's base analogue have been synthesized. Molecules 1 a and 1 c are new cleft compounds and analysis of compound 1 a in the solid state shows inclusion of one molecule of CH(2)Cl(2) in the larger aromatic cleft, whereas in isomer 1 c disordered solvent molecules are trapped in the extended aromatic cleft. Furthermore, in the solid state, isomer 1 c forms infinite open channels along one of the crystallographic axes and perpendicular to this axis there are infinitely extending "wedged-ravines". Importantly, each of the diastereomers 1 a-c is resistant to inversion at the stereogenic nitrogen atoms under strongly and weakly acidic conditions in the range from room temperature (RT) to 95 degrees C. This observed configurational stability at the stereogenic nitrogens of 1 a-c is unique for analogues of Tr?ger's base in general to date. Finally, the ratio of cleft compounds 1 a and 1 c significantly increased relative to cavity compound 1 b when ammonium chloride was used as an additive in the Tr?ger's base condensation to 1 a-c suggesting a templating effect of the ammonium ion.     

Molecular tectonics. Porous hydrogen-bonded networks built from derivatives of 9,9'-spirobifluorene

Molecules with multiple sites that induce strong directional association tend to form open networks with significant volumes available for the inclusion of guests. Such molecules can be conveniently synthesized by grafting diverse sticky sites onto geometrically suitable cores. The characteristic inability of 9,9'-spirobifluorene to form close-packed crystals suggests that it should serve as a particularly effective core for the elaboration of molecules designed to form highly porous networks. To test this hypothesis, various new tetrasubstituted 9,9'-spirobifluorenes with hydrogen-bonding sites at the 3,3',6,6'-positions or 2,2',7,7'-positions were synthesized by multistep routes. Four of these compounds were crystallized, and their structures were determined by X-ray crystallography. In all cases, the compounds form extensively hydrogen-bonded networks with high porosity. In particular, 43% of the volume of crystals of 3,3',6,6'-tetrahydroxy-9,9'-spirobifluorene (28) is available for the inclusion of guests, whereas the porosity is only 28% in crystals of tetrakis(4-hydroxyphenyl)methane, a close model that lacks the spirobifluorene core. Similarly, the porosities found in crystals of 2,2',7,7'-tetra(acetamido)-9,9'-spirobifluorene (33) and 2,2',7,7'-tetrasubstituted tetrakis(diaminotriazine) 39 are 33% and 60%, respectively. Moreover, the porosity of crystals of 2,2',7,7'-tetrasubstituted tetrakis(triaminotriazine) 40 is 75%, the highest value yet observed in crystals built from small molecules. These observations demonstrate that a particularly effective strategy for engineering molecules able to form highly porous networks is to graft multiple sticky sites onto spirobifluorenes or other cores intrinsically resistant to close packing.     

A Structurally Variable Porous Organic Salt Based on a Multidirectional Supramolecular Cluster

A porous organic salt (POS) composed of 2‐sulfophenyl anthracene (2‐SPA) and triphenylmetylamine (TPMA) forms five types of porous crystals, POS‐a–e, by recognizing subtle differences in the molecular structure of incorporated guest molecules. This structurally variable POS was hierarchically designed on the basis of a supramolecular cluster with a directionally flexible linker formed by the organic salt. X‐ray crystallographic analysis reveals that the salt forms six conformers attributable to rocking and rotational motions of the phenylene group in 2‐SPA. The clusters form POS crystals through different porous networks according to the conformers. The POS crystals show a wide range of fluorescence spectra that are responsive to differences in the molecular and electronic structure of the guest molecule. This remarkable behavior has potential application in sensitive chemical sensors that are responsive to slight differences in molecular structures.     

固相转晶合成含硼CF-2沸石过程中甲胺分子的状态变化

以¹³C MAS NMR与TG-DTG为主要手段,研究了多孔玻璃粉于蒸汽相中转变为含硼CF-2沸石过程中模板剂甲胺分子的状态变化.结果表明甲胺分子经历了三种状态变化:在反应初期,甲胺分子与多孔玻璃表面羟基形成弱相互作用;随着反应进行,一部分弱相互作用的甲胺分子转变为强相互作用的甲胺分子;强相互作用的甲胺分子与硅羟基、铝羟基、硼羟基共同形成CF-2沸石晶核,晶核长大成晶体,甲胺分子进入沸石孔道内,此时存在与多孔玻璃粉表面羟基弱相互作用、强相互作用以及处于沸石孔道内的三种甲胺分子.随着结晶度进一步升高,多孔玻璃表面弱相互作用与强相互作用的甲胺分子依次逐渐消失,最终全部进入CF-2沸石孔道内.孔道内有自由状态和质子化的甲胺分子.SEM照片从形貌上直观地表征了多孔玻璃向CF-2沸石的转变过程.     

Hierarchically Porous Poly(ionic liquid) – Organic Cage Composite Membrane for Efficient Iodine Capture

The effective capture of iodine with high volatility and poisonousness is significant for reprocessing the spent nuclear fuel. In this article, we report a hierarchically porous poly(ionic liquid)-organic cage composite membrane (PIL@CC3) possessing a gradient content distribution of CC3 cage crystals throughout the membrane to capture iodine vapor. The introduction of microporous CC3 can significantly enhance the uptake capacity of iodine up to 980 mg g⁻¹, which is superior to that of a pristine PIL membrane carrying large meso- and macropores (99 mg g⁻¹), and CC3 crystalline powder (662 mg g⁻¹). Such enhanced performance benefits from the micro-meso-macroporous structure of the PIL@CC3 membrane in which the large meso- and macropores facilitate the mass transfer of iodine molecules from the external environment into the surface of the CC3 crystal, followed by diffusion of iodine molecules from the CC3 surface into the interior and exterior pores of the CC3 crystal. In addition, the asymmetric distribution of CC3 crystals across the PIL@CC3 membrane also displays its advantage in intercepting trace iodine, revealing its great potential for practical application. This study provides an idea for constructing hierarchically porous membrane composites for the removal of toxic vapors.     

基于Nafion聚合物的气相色谱固定相的分离性能研究

该文以Nafion膜为固定相,采用动态涂覆法将其涂覆在毛细管内壁,并研究了其在气相色谱分离烷烃、醇及取代芳香烃等方面的性能。结果表明,通过改变色谱分析条件,不同碳数的直链烷烃、直链醇、蒎烯类异构体、C8芳烃异构体取代芳香位置异构体均在Nafion膜固定相上得到了有效的分离,大部分异构体在该固定相上基本按照沸点从低到高的顺序依次洗脱。此外,还对基于Nafion膜的色谱柱分离蒎烯异构体和芳香位置异构体进行了热力学研究,并发现该柱分离异构体过程为放热过程,蒎烯分离受焓变和熵变共同控制,而芳香异构体分离过程主要受焓变的控制。     

Molecular organic crystals: from barely porous to really porous

Holey suitable crystals: A trisbenzimidazolone molecule self-assembles by hydrogen bonding to form a permanently porous crystal with an apparent surface area, SA(BET) , of 2796?m(2) g(-1) , demonstrating that extrinsic, intermolecular porosity is a viable strategy for highly porous materials.     

Synthesis of a Stable Selenoaldehyde by Self‐Catalyzed Thermal Dehydration of a Primary‐Alkyl‐Substituted Selenenic Acid

The unprecedented dehydration of a selenenic acid (RCH₂SeOH) to a selenoaldehyde (RCH?Se) has been demonstrated. A primary‐alkyl‐substituted selenenic acid was synthesized for the first time by taking advantage of a bulky cavity‐shaped substituent. Upon heating in solution, the selenenic acid underwent thermal dehydration to produce a stable selenoaldehyde, which was isolated as stable crystals and crystallographically characterized. Investigation of the reaction mechanism revealed that this β dehydration reaction involves two processes, both of which reflect the characteristics of a selenenic acid: 1) dehydrative condensation of two molecules of selenenic acid to generate a selenoseleninate intermediate [RCH₂SeSe(O)CH₂R], an isomer of a selenenic anhydride, and 2) subsequent β elimination of the selenenic acid from this intermediate to form a C?Se double bond, which establishes the self‐catalyzed β dehydration of the selenenic acid.     

Oriented Two‐Dimensional Porous Organic Cage Crystals

The formation of two‐dimensional (2D) oriented porous organic cage crystals (consisting of imine‐based tetrahedral molecules) on various substrates (such as silicon wafers and glass) by solution‐processing is reported. Insight into the crystallinity, preferred orientation, and cage crystal growth was obtained by experimental and computational techniques. For the first time, structural defects in porous molecular materials were observed directly and the defect concentration could be correlated with crystal growth rate. These oriented crystals suggest potential for future applications, such as solution‐processable molecular crystalline 2D membranes for molecular separations.     

Rational self-assembly of polygonal organic microcrystals for shape-dependent multi-directional 2D optical waveguides

Micro-nano-level photonic waveguide regulation is essential for future on-chip photonic integrated systems and is still of great challenges. We report a molecular design strategy, changing the position of the methyl substituent makes the arrangement of the three isomer molecules different in their respective crystals. Based on this strategy, three sheet-like crystals with different polygonal morphologies were prepared via solution self-assembly approach. The in-depth optical measurements demonst...